


If the Tights Fit.

by snowspell



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Drabble Collection, Family Feels
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-16
Updated: 2014-08-16
Packaged: 2018-02-13 09:13:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2145180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snowspell/pseuds/snowspell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Collection of all of my Avengers Fics that will probably always be drabbles because I have trouble finishing things. Starting off with Tony getting the family he never wanted.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Ties That Bind: Of Grief and Galas

**Author's Note:**

> Pepper stepped out of the master bedroom in nothing but one of Tony's button up shirts. She turned her green eyes on Tony and his arm full of young woman.
> 
> Tony looked down at the woman clinging to him then back at his fiancee, "This isn't what it looks like?"

Jenna looked up from her paperwork at the click of expensive heels on the hardwood floors.  The office looked very different after Jenna had taken it over.  Her more flamboyant design style had shown up in the grass green accent wall and curving bamboo furniture.  Where Tony tended toward opulent modernism she preferred something warm and organic. Pepper smiled as she walked in.  She looked the picture of efficiency in a structured deep blue skirt and tailored white button-up top with a tiny frill at the collar that gave a hint of femininity to her no nonsense appearance.  

 

"Hi Pepper," Jenna said with a slight smile, "Must be a slow day, you haven't reminded me of an appointment yet."

 

Pepper smiled back, "You have the Governor's Charity Ball tonight at 7," she replied holding up her blackberry to indicate the highlighted appointment.  She glanced at her watch, "Which means you need to stop working in one hour to get ready."

 

Jenna pulled a face before sighing heavily, "I can't get out of it, can I?"

 

Pepper tilted her head in confusion.  Jenna was usually perfectly willing to handle the PR side of the CEO job while Pepper focused on time management and contract negotiation.

 

"It's October 23rd," Jenna responded to the red-head's silent inquiry.

 

Pepper's face dropped with sadness as she realized what the date meant to both of them.  She had been so busy with the acquisition of Xenon Tech that she had lost track of the days. 

 

Jenna nodded looking down at her black pants and shirt.  It had been two years since Obidiah Stane had pulled the arc reactor out of Tony's chest and left him to die on the plush white couch in his living room...

 

After the grief had come a bone deep need for revenge.  Both women were well aware of how well money greased the wheels of justice to spin in a person's favor, and Obidiah also had favors owed from several political giants.  Neither woman was willing to allow his connections to prevent justice. It had taken nearly four months but she and Pepper had hunted Stane down and made sure he paid for Tony's murder.  After the drive of revenge was gone, Jenna felt hollow.  Stane was dead but it didn't bring her brother back.  And on top of the anger and pain of loss was the guilt.  She had been out that night.  For weeks afterwards all she could do was wonder if she could have stopped it.  If she had been there, could she have saved her big brother?  

 

Pepper had saved her from her own pain.  She had heartlessly reminded her that Stark Industries wouldn't run itself anywhere but into the ground.  Or worse, right back into the arms race that Tony had worked so hard to pull it from.  So Jenna pulled herself out of her stupor, used cover-up to hide the dark circles under her eyes, and took the reigns of Start Industry.  Which was about the time she realized she was woefully incapable at business.  What had she expected?  She had trained in Textile Chemistry and Metallurgy not business management. 

 

But she had Pepper and the competent red-head handled most of the business matters for her.  She was more of a figure head.  So she attended parties and shook hands, she smiled her false smiles and made small talk with kings of industry.  And very quietly she changed her will to make Pepper the CEO in the case that she was unable to fulfill the role.  She wouldn't leave the company in the quandary that Tony's dea- that happened before.

 

Pulling herself back to the present she finished up the last of her report on a poly-carb fabric that might be a good base for flexible military grade armor and closed her computer.  The only good part of being CEO of Stark Industries was being able to indulge her inner geek and see all of the newest armor and fiber technology advancements months before they hit the market.  Turning to her titular assistant she squared her shoulders, "It's been two years.  I can handle one party."  Pepper squeezed her hand reassuringly before they both left to get ready for the Gala.

 

Jenna groaned as she leaned against the wall in the entry and pulled off her sky high heels.  Her feet throbbed with every step, reminding her of the hours she spent talking to politicians and high profile guests, promoting the image of Stark Industries.  She slowly walked into the penthouse of Stark Tower.  It had been Tony's last project and she had been determined to see it done to his exact specifications.  It had only been completed six months ago but she loved living here.  It was the closest thing to feeling at home that she had come.

 

"Good evening Miss. How was your party?"

 

"Hi JARVIS," Jenna said to the dimmed ceiling, "Boring as expected. Lots of talking to liars and pretending to care about someone's vacation."

 

"My sympathies Miss.  Shall I run you a bath?"

 

Jenna considered it for a moment but finally decided in favor of the siren song of her bed, "No thanks JARVIS.  I'm just going to get some sleep instead."

 

"Of course Miss.  Pleasant dreams."

 

Jenna smiled at the disembodied British voice before padding down the hall and into one of the bedrooms that was originally marked as a guest bedroom.  It was bigger than most master suits and included a walk in closet and an en suite bathroom but was small by Tony's standards.  She didn't really have the same opulent tastes as her brother and the lavish master bedroom was a bit much for her.  Instead that room was filled with things that reminded her of Tony. A twisted wrench from the first time Tony blew up his lab with her in it.  Her first chemistry set, a gift from him on her 10th birthday. A pair of sunglasses that she had stolen from him when she was 15.  She had told him it was because she liked them better than the girly ones but secretly it was because she wanted to see the world through his eyes.

 

Once inside her bedroom she barely managed to change into a pair of blue sleep shorts and t-shirt before dropping into an exhausted sleep.

 


	2. The Ties That Bind Ch 2: An Unexpected Visitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jenna's life feels like a bad fortune cookie joke.  
> "Be open to new experiences and you will make new friends...in bed."

Something was wrong.  

That was the first thought that moved sluggishly through Jenna's sleep fogged brain.  She opened her eyes a slit, mentally grumbling about not getting enough sleep. The blinds were drawn against the late morning light leaving the room in shadow and slants of sunlight.  Jenna's brow furrowed as she tried to remember if she had pulled the blinds last night.  She usually liked to wake up to the morning sunlight but considering her late night she might have closed them.  Jenna made a mental note to stay away from champagne.  It apparently caused short term amnesia.  Unable to pinpoint the odd uneasy feeling she finally gave it up in favor of greeting the day.  She stretched, feeling her back pop and flexing her feet to make sure the previous night hadn't left any lasting damage, when her back came into contact with something solid.  Something solid and very warm.  Jenna shrieked and toppled of the side of the bed before scrambling back from the bed and staring at the strange man that had been laying beside her.  

Apparently the intruder hadn't expected her to scream, because at the sound he had also bolted from the bed and was standing on the opposite side in a defensive crouch.  Even slightly bent he was tall, probably over 6 feet with a muscular build covered in a body hugging white t-shirt and low slung striped sleep pants like her father used to wear.  His gold hair was mussed from sleep and fell slightly forward across his eyes.  Eyes that were hard and assessing, looking for a threat.  When his gaze met hers he scowled in confusion for a moment before grimacing in annoyance and finally settling on a slightly sheepish expression.  Jenna silently prayed that she hadn't gotten so drunk that she had brought some strange guy home with her.  Taking a closer look at him she decided that, even if she had made a phenomenally bad decision, at least she picked a GQ model to do it with.

She noticed absently that he seemed to be working very hard on not letting his gaze stray below her chin.  In the back of her mind Jenna thought it was a weird action for a would-be assailant.  He took a few steps towards her and held out a hand to help her up.  Jenna's brows shot up in surprise.  Was he mental that he thought she would let him get a grip on her?  She scrambled to her feet and kept a wary distance between them.

The man cleared his throat uncomfortable, "Um ma'am.  Are you in the wrong room?"

Jenna's jaw sagged open in surprise.  She felt like she was in some kind of twilight zone.  She had been scared half to death and this crazy man was asking her if she was in the wrong room?!  Did he really think that his room included her collection of my little ponies? Jenna suddenly noticed that her ponies were gone.  Actually her entire bookshelf was missing.  Looking around the room revealed that the furniture was all made of walnut instead of maple and had a square masculine design to it.  There was a Brooklyn Dodgers pennant on the wall and a framed black and white picture on the side table.  The room was right, the carpet and bathroom and window but everything else was wrong, like someone else lived here.  Jenna's heart started to hammer in her chest.  She spun around and jerked open the door, walking out into the brightly lit hallway.

The hall floor was cold grey granite just as it was every morning but instead of her family pictures on the wall she found framed artwork that she recognized from Pepper's collection and a couple of framed blueprints from some of Tony's more spectacular creations.  One unfamiliar one looked like some kind of robot.  

Jenna had a strange feeling like the world had gone crazy.  Nothing was the way it should have been.  The man that had been in the bedroom with her had followed her out into the hallway.  In the brighter light she absently noticed that his eyes were a bright baby blue giving him a wholesome air.  She turned frightened eyes on him, "What's going on?  Where are my pictures?  and my dresser?  And WHO ARE YOU?!?"

Apparently that last outburst woke the house because the door at the end of the hall that lead to the master suite opened, "What's all the racket?" a man asked with a slight smirk curving the corners of his lips, giving him a mischievous expression.

Jenna stopped dead, eyes fixed on the new member of their little tableau.  She felt all the blood drain from her face as she stared, "T-t-tony?" she said in the barest whisper.

Her brother's eyes flicked between her and the strange man that had followed her out into the hall crinkling with undisguised glee, "Cap!  Finally tarnishing that squeaky clean image?"

"Tony, be serious!" the man, whose name was apparently 'cap' said with an exasperated glare, "Is this one of your..." he seemed to struggle with an appropriate term, "friends?"

Tony put up his hands in mock innocence, "She's pretty but I'm strictly a one woman man now.  Looks like this one is all yours."

The two men began bickering, but Jenna could barely hear the exchange through the roaring in her ears.  That was Tony...her Tony.  Her annoying, wonderful brother Tony.  It had been two years but everything was the same.  his voice, his terrible sense of humor, and there was the glowing blue arc reactor showing through his threadbare Black Sabbath shirt.  She was suddenly terrified that he would disappear like some kind of grief induced mirage.  In a burst of adrenaline she lunged forward, sprinting the few feet between them and threw her arms around his neck, clinging to her brother with desperate fierceness...just as Pepper stepped out of the master bedroom in nothing but one of Tony's button up shirts.  She turned her green eyes on Tony and his arm full of young woman.

Tony looked down at the woman clinging to him then back at his fiancee, "This isn't what it looks like?"


	3. The Ties That Bind Ch 3: Time for a Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jenna meets her brother...with mixed results.

Jenna kept her hands firmly wrapped around the mug of tea Pepper had gotten her after she had explained the situation.  She was certain her hands would start shaking if she let it go. A small part of her brain noticed how odd it was that Pepper didn't know how she liked her tea but still knew that tea would calm her down.  They had mutually decided on tea about a month after Tony had died when Pepper noticed that Jenna was turning to her brother's favorite hard liquor to dull the emotional pain.  Jenna shook herself out of the reverie and back to the present.  She was sitting on a butter soft leather chair trying to process what had happened.  Actually, she was just trying to figure out what had happened.  

After she had finally been able to unlatch herself from Tony she had seen Pepper and hugged her in relief at seeing someone that was supposed to be in the house with her.  That had apparently gotten Tony out of quite a bit of trouble with his girlfriend.  She began babbling at Pepper, trying to figure out what had happened and where Tony had been for the last three years.  

Okay, she admitted she had been hysterical at the time but her big brother was back from the grave and some strange man was sleeping in her bed.  If this wasn't a time for hysterics she didn't know what was!  

The commotion had woken the rest of the house as well and people started emerging from other rooms, all looking wary at her intrusion.  Now they were in a ragged half circle around her perched on chairs and sofas or standing.  

Jenna took in the motley assortment of strangers in her, now unfamiliar, living room.  Pepper was sitting in the chair closest to her with Tony standing just behind her, his hip grazing her shoulder.  As usual, Tony acted completely oblivious to personal space.  Jenna felt a warm glow at their position.  It was obvious to her that he cared for Pepper very much.    

The tall blond from earlier had taken the time to shrug on a pair of khakis and a fresh t-shirt.  He was standing a few feet away from Tony.  To his right was a slim red-head with calculating eyes.  She wore yoga pants and a tank top and looked as if she had recently been working out.  Perched on the back of the sofa opposite her was a man with short sandy brown hair and blue eyes.  He had quite deliberately taken out a large handgun and checked the clip before slamming it home and turning his gaze back to her.  Jenna had swallowed hard.  Even knowing it was a purposeful move to intimidate her didn't make it any less scary.  The next member of the strange group was a diffident brunette man with curly hair and a soft smile.  His skin showed the swarthy tan of someone that had spent time in a hot climate.  Finishing the ragged circle was a man even taller than all the others with long blond hair and a short cropped beard.  Next to him was a tiny woman a few inches shorter than Jenna with a slim build and doe-like brown eyes.  Their hands brushed unconsciously and Jenna would bet hard cash that they were in a relationship.

"Now, let's get to the bottom of this.  What's your name?" Pepper asked in a business like tone.

Jenna took a bracing breath and put down her mug on the mahogany side table, "Jenna," she responded, "Jenna Marie Stark."

Everyone's eyes turned to Tony with a mixture of shock and accusation.  Pepper arched a brow at the dark haired man, "Is there something I should know about?"

Tony looked about as shocked as he could, "Hey!  She's gotta be at least 25.  I admit to being an early bloomer but I wasn't having kids when I was eleven!"

Jenna's eyes went wide.  She never considered someone thinking she was Tony's daughter.

"No, no!" she exclaimed, trying to clear up the miscommunication, "Tony's not my dad.  He's my brother."  She tried to picture Tony as a dad and shuddered at the thought.  He was a great brother but she wouldn't trust him with something that couldn't fend for itself...and dodge explosions.

"My what?!" he exclaimed.  "Look, I don't have a sister.  Only child here."

"Tony that's not funny." Jenna said with a frown.

"No, it's not. It's slander," he returned with a hard glint in his eye.

"Slander!  Look Tony, I don't know what the hell is going on but don't you dare deny my place in this family.  It may be fucked up all to hell and back but it's my fucked up family and no one, not even my idiot-genius brother is going to take that away from me!"

"How dare you call me and idiot, you imposter!"

"Imposter!" Jenna shouted.  They were both standing inches away from each other, literally shouting in each other's faces.  

Pepper looked between the two of them.  Jenna was short, only about 5'4" with dark wavy hair and swarthy skin that spoke of Italian or Mediterranean heritage.  Her eyes were a lighter shade of brown than Tony's, almost a hazel.  What caught her attention were their mannerisms.  Both were gesticulating broadly with nearly identical arm waves and finger jabs to illustrate their points.  She looked past them at Natasha, who was by far the best person in the house at reading body language.  Although they had met while Natasha was undercover, the two women had formed a fast friendship.

Natasha met her eyes before glancing at the two arguers and back at Pepper with a raised brow.  So Natasha also noticed the strange similarities between their mannerisms.  That more than anything lent credence to Jenna's claim of kinship.

Steve finally put an end to the fighting by putting a hand on each of their shoulders and pushing them apart, putting himself bodily between them.

"Ok guys, cut it out," he said in a commanding voice.  Everyone obeyed him, although it looked like Tony was about to argue.  The man turned toward the curly haired man that Jenna had pegged as a foreign traveller.

"Doc, is there something you can do to straighten this out?"

The doctor pushed his wire-frame glasses up his nose in a practiced habit and nodded, "There are several DNA tests I can run to determine her parentage."

Jenna and Tony turned equally smug looks on each other, both obviously convinced that the tests would vindicate them.

Clint looked at the two faces and commented to Natasha, "That is just eerie.  It's like girl-Tony."

"Definitely," Jane said from beside Thor.

 


	4. The Ties That Bind Ch 4: Getting To Know You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony makes some connections and Jenna rolls with the punches.

Bruce carefully sealed and labeled the blood samples he took from Tony and the girl, Jenna.  He then excused himself to head down to the lab and run the tests.

After the blood draw was done Pepper took charge of Jenna, finding a room for her to use while they sorted out the issue of relation.  Jenna kept noticing all of the things that were different in the house.  Artwork and furniture choices.  Pepper led her to a guest room that Jenna had set up as an office.  The room was now set for it's original purpose with a queen size bed and was done up in royal blue and cream.  Jenna sat gingerly on the bed.  She was under no illusions as to why Pepper had ushered her off.  The others were probably discussing the situation and didn't want her around for it.  

Jenna pushed away the sudden feeling of hurt at being pushed out of her brother's life.  Somehow, Tony was alive but didn't know her.  There were strange people living in the tower and all of the furniture and decor had been changed.  Jenna was facing the very real possibility that she had either slipped deep into madness or had somehow woken up in a universe where Tony was alive but she wasn't.  Jenna held back a bubble of hysterical laughter.  Hadn't she said she would give up everything to have Tony alive and annoying her again?  Well, everything was exactly what was taken.

Pepper watched the younger woman for a moment, sympathy tugging at her heart.  Tony had been the target for many paternity claims but somehow Pepper didn't think this was one of those specious claims.  The woman before her looked so lost and alone.  She was either the world's best actor or she had just had everything turned upside down on her.

"I'll see about getting you some clothing to change into," Pepper offered, noting that Jenna was still in her pajamas.  Jenna nodded dumbly as she continued to stare into space.  She didn't even notice when Pepper quietly left the room and returned an hour later with some folded clothing that she placed on the bed beside the quiet woman.

"How long will it take to get the results?" Natasha asked.  Her tone was neutral and you could practically see her sifting through all the likely scenarios.

"Two hours," Tony answered absently, "As long as it's the same as a paternity test. Then we can get back to normal."

Natasha raised an eyebrow at his turn of phrase.  Tony shrugged, "Well as normal as it gets around here."

Down in the lab Bruce was watching the DNA results flicker across the computer screen.  His eyebrows shot up as the results appeared, "Well I'll be damned."  He copied the results over to a Stark tablet and hurried back to the living room to break the news.

Tony was sitting at the bar, surprisingly not drinking.  Every eye in the room was trained on Bruce as he came into the room.

"So, what's the verdict doc?"

"Tony, your DNA is a 57% match for Jenna's.  There is very little chance that she isn't your sister."

Tony blinked a few times, "Huh."  Tony glanced towards the bedroom that Jenna was in.  He looked back at the bar longingly before getting up and walking over to the door.  The others glanced between themselves before quietly getting up and leaving to give him some privacy.

Jenna finally shook herself out of her morose mood.  She was a Stark.  We are practically raised on stubborness.  Resolutely she got up and snatched the pile of clothing off the bed and quickly changed into the jeans and t-shirt that Pepper had brought her.  Suddenly she wasn't entirely sure what to do.  She wanted to do something about the situation but what?  She knew from long experience that pushing Tony right now would just get his back up.  Finally she settled on exploring the decorations in the room.  

She was examining a model of a zen sand garden when someone knocked on the door.  A heartbeat later Tony pushed the door open and stood there, hovering in the doorway.  Jenna felt horrible awkward, trying to figure out what to say to her brother. Deciding to just plunge ahead she queried, "So, lab results are in?"

"Yah."

She nodded but didn't demand that he tell her he was wrong.  Tony's eyes kept scanning her, searching for something.  She realized that he was trying to see himself or maybe their parents in her.  Jenna knew what he would find.  They were both about average height, although Jenna was on the short side of 5'4".  Jenna's shoulder length wavy hair was the same dark shade as Tony's, as was her tanned skin.  Her features were smaller, with her mother's cupid's bow mouth and hazel eyes. Jenna's softer, rounder build reflected her long hours in the lab while Tony had the stronger build of someone that was elbows deep in engine grease half the time.

"Jenna huh?" Tony asked.

"Yup.  Mom wanted to call me Francesca but dad vetoed it and I ended up with Jenna."

Tony went very still for a moment, "Francesca?"

"Yah," Jenna said, confused by the question.  It had been a bit of a family joke when she was a kid.  When she was eight she declared that she would have run away if they had named her Francesca.  It had been one of the few times she remembered her father laughing.  Although it was a fond memory for her, she didn't understand why Tony would be so interested in it.

"How old are you?" he demanded sharply.

"twenty-six."

Tony went suddenly still for a moment and then visibly shook himself, acting as if nothing had happened.  Unfortunately Jenna wasn't nearly smart enough to follow her brother's whip-quick mental contortions.

"I don't have a sister," Tony said.  He held up his hand to stave off her protests, "I mean.  I didn't grow up with a sister.  Where did you come from?"

"You are never going to believe this," Jenna warned.

Tony's lips curved into a smirk that said he knew something you didn't, "Try me."

So Jenna did.  She explained living with a business driven father and the accident that had killed them when she was eleven and Tony was eighteen.  She talked about sitting in the workshop and watching him build Dumm-e and U.  She showed him the scar on her leg from when the workshop had blown up during one of his fuel experiments.  Then she took a deep breath and told him about his death.  She glossed over her control of the company and Stane's death.  Then she got to last night and going to bed only to wake up with some stranger in her bed and Tony alive and well.

Tony listened intently, asking questions about his childhood or news articles she remembered.  Finally they were both silent.  Jenna waited for a response from the man beside her. After a few minutes of processing he shrugged.

"Well, at least you're not from another planet."

Jenna opened her mouth then closed it again with a click.  On second thought, she really didn't want to know.

 


End file.
